Congressman Alan Lowenthal (CA-47) joined with the 54 other members of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC) to release the SEEC Sustainable Infrastructure Plan. The comprehensive plan serves as a blueprint for smart, environmentally sustainable infrastructure investment throughout the nation.

The SEEC plan also stands in stark contrast to the recently released Trump Administration infrastructure plan that eviscerates core environmental safeguards, fails to meaningfully incorporate forward-looking sustainability and resiliency initiatives, and falls far short of the robust direct federal investment necessary to rebuild our crumbling national infrastructure. The vast majority of Americansknow that our nation can build and modernize infrastructure while keeping environment and public health protections in place.

“Sustainability should be integrated into all of our infrastructure projects,” Congressman Lowenthal, a SEEC Vice-chair, said. “Unfortunately, the Trump Administration’s infrastructure proposal is heavy on environmental rollbacks that limit public input and weaken protections for our families and environment. This SEEC infrastructure proposal instead charts a fresh vision of smart, sustainable investments that will promote the well-being of all Americans, including healthier, safer communities and environments. When done right, infrastructure investment can promote commerce, sustain good jobs, and protect our environment. This Administration presents a false choice.”

Congress Members and SEEC Co-Chairs Gerry Connolly (VA-11), Doris Matsui (CA-06), and Paul Tonko (NY-20) added, “SEEC’s proposal takes on today’s infrastructure challenges in a sustainable, forward-thinking way. Contrary to what President Trump keeps saying, our environmental protections aren’t slowing infrastructure down—the real problem is a lack of funding. We are wasting our time and money if we don’t have an infrastructure plan that addresses the need for resilient infrastructure that can stand up to climate change and meaningful federal investment that can help get these projects to completion.”

The SEEC document begins with a statement of principles, laying out a broad outline for what “sustainable infrastructure” entails, and then presents a series of brief policy documents that contain specific proposals for multiple categories of physical infrastructure. The document should serve as a model for sustainable principles to be included in any infrastructure package that is considered by Congress.

SEEC is a coalition of 55 members of the U.S. House of Representatives that was founded in January 2009 to be a focused, active, and effective coalition for advancing “policies that promote clean energy technology innovation and domestic manufacturing, develop renewable energy resources, and create green collar jobs throughout the product supply-chain, and polices to help arrest global warming and protect our nation’s clean air, water and natural environment.”

SEEC is Co-Chaired by Congress Members Gerald Connolly, Doris Matsui, and Paul Tonko.